Roasted Sweet Potato Salad

What’s healthy, inexpensive, and has a face only a mother could love? A sweet potato - and I love ‘em all. They taste great and when roasted, go from good to absolutely great. As an added bonus, sweet potatoes are full of Vitamins A & C as are red peppers. Black beans pack in protein, fiber, and iron. Throw on a little dressing and you will be healthy, wealthier, and wise to the world of roasted sweet potatoes.

NB: You can make a lot of this or cut the recipe way down. Nothing too fussy with proportions. Here is the larger amount to start.

Heat oven to 450 degrees

Ingredients
3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes – no need to be super precise! Too big, however, and they may not cook through; too small and they may burn.
1 teaspoon salt
Olive oil
1 red pepper, remove inner core and seeds then chop into bite size pieces. Tiny, sweet grape tomatoes (halved) work well too. Just need some crunch and a pop of color.
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

Take a large baking sheet and cover with aluminum foil. Spray foil lightly with Pam. Spread cut sweet potatoes on baking sheet in a single layer. Sprinkle potatoes with salt and then drizzle with olive oil. Using your hands, lightly toss sweet potatoes to make sure all are covered with oil. You don’t want the pieces swimming in oil, just lightly coated.

Place sweet potatoes in oven for 20 -30 minutes. Ovens are notorious for varying in temperature (especially the ones found in dorms or inexpensive apartments) so keep an eye on your sweet potatoes. You want them to have a lovely brown roasted exterior on at least one side of each piece. It will help if you open oven after about 15 minutes and carefully use a heat proof spatula or turner to flip pieces over & about. There’s a fine line between a beautiful roasted crust and just plain burnt.

While potatoes are roasting, place red peppers and black beans in a serving bowl.

When sweet potatoes are done, remove from oven, and add to the red peppers and black beans. Add vinaigrette (see below) and toss gently. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm or at room temperature. Eat this alone, add some great bread, or tuck in to tortilla with cheese for a great quesadilla or burrito.

Vinaigrette
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon pure maple syrup

Place all three ingredients in small bowl with a pinch of salt and few grinds of pepper. Stir vigorously with fork.

Basic Tools: Colander

Every now and then recipes will be punctuated with some gotta have ’em basics. Could be equipment. Perhaps an essential ingredient. But these are things that go beyond whim or desire. These are items you need. And as all my children will sadly confirm, I have an unending preach-iness when it comes to the gospel of want vs. need. To be clear, I am on the side of need.

Anyway: the colander. This you need. You need it to drain pasta. Rinse fruits &veggies. Strain soups or sauces, though you will be doing more of the first two than this last one. Even though I am an enormous cheap skate, I advise buying a stainless steel colander with short legs or a rounded base to lift your valuables away from whatever is rushing though. Good handles are necessary for obvious reasons. I also prefer metal as opposed to plastic because I don’t like heated plastic in contact with food. Just call it mother’s intuition. You don’t need to spend much more than $10.00 for a good one. Check out Marshall’s or HomeGoods in addition Target or Walmart. The one pictured here is from Marshall’s and cost $12.00. Guess who is going to college with a shiny new colander?

Mac n' Comfort

On a cold day in January. On a cool day in June. Ok, on any day, home-made mac n’ cheese is go-to comfort food. There is absolutely no comparison between the real-deal and the orange or white powder-y version. Yes, this takes a little longer, but the pay-off is so worth it. The recipe makes a large amount, but you can cut all the ingredients if you want to go smaller. Just use a smaller baking dish.

Ingredients

1 lb. box pasta any mac friendly shape: penne, rotini, elbows. We like Barilla

4 cups grated cheese - you can try 12 oz. Cracker Barrel 2% milk cheddar - lowers the fat level a bit, but not the comfort.

4 tablespoons butter

6 tablespoons flour

4 cups milk

salt/pepper

Heat oven to 350 degrees

1. Cook pasta according to directions on box. Shave a minute or two off the total cooking time since the dish will bake in the oven.
2. While pasta is cooking, make the cheese sauce. Melt butter in large sauce pan. When totally melted, leave heat on under the pan and add flour. Stir this mixture with a wooden spoon for 2 minutes. Slowly add milk and whisk the milk in to the buttery flour to remove any lumps. Again, leave heat a medium level. Milk will thicken slightly. Once the milk is incorporated, heat for another 2 minutes. Remove from heat and add grated cheese with a pinch of salt & pepper. Stir thoroughly to combine.
3. If there is enough room in saucepan, add pasta to the cheese sauce. If not, put both pasta and cheese sauce together in pasta pot. Stir to combine.
4. Pour mac n’cheese into a 13" x 9" pyrex baking dish. Heat in oven for 30 - 35 minutes or until golden brown. Remove & add pepper & savor!

Serve with some kind of veggie. You’ll feel better about indulging and mac n’cheese tastes even better when it has a nice counter-taste from broccoli or spinach or whatever you choose.